Buke

The Buke have protected and farmed the land of the islands for centuries, paying vassalage to the Emperor. They were considered the arms of the Empire, the strength and the sword. Since most of them were rural samurai, a class lower than the Kuge, they were despised. While the Emperor was alive, they were honored simply because they could serve him, bound by their strict code of honor. But after his death they were taken aback.

After much discussion on who should be the following emperor, a lot of Kuge re-considered their loyalty, and this led, over time, to the appearance of new clans governed by the Buke families. These new rebellious Daimyo started to act on their own, stopped paying tribute to the Kuge and pulled themselves together in their territories.

Now, these new Daimyo are imposing the belief that the Kuge are corrupted and weak. They have started to build great castles to protect themselves from the old lords and from others like them. From their walls, they gaze at their neighbors' lands and plan their conquer to increase their power. They are resolved to start a new era in which the samurai govern the islands, a new order in which the Emperor would be a mere puppet managed by the warriors' real strength.

These rural samurai are tough fighters, hardened from life in the mountains, who follow the ancestral warrior's code, the Bushido. As children, they are trained in the art of swordplay and they consider the use of foreign firearms dishonorable. They are great riders and archers; one of the most fearful warriors in the Intermediate World.